[Ezequiel B]

Hi,

We have a 4 month old German Shepard and we have two issues with trying to feed her kibbles:

(1) she doesnt like them
(2) when she does eat them she doesnt chew which leads to bloating, diarrhea, etc

For (1) we have tried three different brands (Blue Buffalo, Eukanuba, and Wellness Core) with little success. We also tried mixing in some wet food but it only made (2) worse.

Since we were left with three bags of expensive kibbles we decided to throw them in the food processor (seperately. we did not mix brands) and we have been feeding her about a 50/50 mix of Wellness Core Grain Free Puppy Formula (wet) and Eukanuba (pulverized kibbles).

My question is…..is this a bad thing we’re doing? should she be able/willing/trained to eat kibbles?

Thank you!

[Kate L]

I doubt that unchewed kibble is the problem. More than likely, it is a food sensitivity of some sort. If I had to guess, it is the kibble. Kibble is highly processed at a high heat, which renders the fats somewhat indigestible. Could be, your puppy is one of the dogs who has a sensitive stomach. My dog has a sensitive stomach. Any reason you want to feed kibble? Canned is better. (that is just my opinion and the opinion of some nutritionists, but not all). However, canned can be higher in fat.
It is perfectly OK to crush the kibble, by the way. Many dogs never actually chew kibble. I had a pug that never chewed kibble. . .just woofed it down whole. He was fine. When you switch brands, do it over a week. 1/4 at a time. . .very slowly.

[Jonathan S]

I agree with Kate, but also, if she is turning up her nose at wet food as well, it may be the protein source. I’m not sure what flavors your trying, but maybe try something different… fish based food is often a good option when you’re having trouble. My pups are both intolerant of Bison, Venison, and Beef. They do well with Lamb, Turkey, Chicken, Rabbit and Fish. Maybe try to get some samples of different varieties and see if she reacts differently, then go from there.

[Ezequiel B]

Thanks for the replies.

She does eat wet food. She LOVES it. The reason why I want her to eat more kibbles is purely economical. She’s only 4 months and can eat two cans per meal if i dont mix it with kibbles. Three meals per day…..it can get pretty pricey (since im buying 4-5 star rated foods).

I do agree that her stomach might be sensitive (specially to the blue buffalo brand) but my vet and other forums said that unchewed kibbles do lead to the digestive problems that she was experiencing.

[Jonathan S]

It might be tough to find in a puppy formula, but maybe try bigger kibbles? That helped with my dogs. Also, as I understand it, puppy food tends to be higher in fat… that may be contributing. Because of the fat content, I had to move my pups to adult food earlier than I had planned when I started feeding them raw diet as well. Once I did though, their tummies settled down and they started chewing the bigger kibbles instead of wolfing everything down!

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